Lap pin ejector



H. H. NEUMAN LAP PIN EJECTOR Jan. 17, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Sept.7, 1955 PJJ s H. H.'NE UMAN LAP PIN EJECTOR Jan. 17, 1961 Filed sept. 7,1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 United States Patent LAP PIN EJECTOR Herbert H.Neuman, Manchester, NH., assigner to Blackstone, Inc., Manchester, N.H.,a corporation of Delaware Filed Sept. 7, 1955, Ser. No. 532,884

2 Claims. (Cl. 242-55.1)

This invention relates to textile machinery and more especially to lapforming machines generally known as pickers 4 lCustomarily textileAfibers whether natural or artificial are formed into a lap and wound ona lap pin in the form of a lap roll approximately 3 feet long andvarying in diameter in preparation for mounting at the feed-in end of. acarding machine. The lap pin is free to rise as the diameter ofthe rollincreases and when'the lap reaches a predetermined kdiameter the machineis automatically brought to a stop. The lap pin is a hollow bar ofconsiderable size and weight, having a handle at one end and when thelap reaches the desired size and the machine has stopped the voperatorinserts a lap rod through the openend of the lap pin, which rod is longenough to extend clear through the lap roll, and then grasps the handleof the lap pin at the opposite end and by a strong pull withdraws itfrom the core of the lap roll, leaving the lap rod in its place with itsend projecting from the ends of the lap roll'. VThe operator then graspsthe ends of the lap rod, lifts the roll clear of the machine and placesit on a rack for storage by setting the ends of the rod on spacedbrackets. The lap pin is then replaced in the machine and another laproll is wound.

The principal objects of this invention are to provide means tofacilitate removing the lap pin from the wound lap roll, thereby tolessen the labor required to perform this operation; to effect a removalof the pin with the least amount of axial displacement of the core ofthe lap; to provide means for removing the lap pin and leaving the laprod in place, which will not necessitate changing the structure of themachine or disturb its operation; to provide a device which Willfacilitate removal of the lap rod, which is adapted to be employed withany type of picker lap machine; which is dependable, economicaly anddoes not require special skill in its operation.

As herein illustrated the device is an ejector mounted opposite the endof the lap pin, which is open, at a level corresponding substantially tothe level that the lap pin will have when the desired amount of lap iswound thereon and ready for dofling. The ejector is in the form ofapower operated hammer or piston movable toward the end of the lap rodwithin the lap pin and through it to impart a sharp blow to the lap pinand thus` dislodge it from the core of' the lap roll, so that anoperator stationed at the opposite. end of the roll and pullingsimultaneously on the handle .of the .lap pin may withdraw the pineasily. Preferably the ejector is a pneumatically o-perated piston andthere is a control valve on the oor at the end of the roll from whichthe handle projects, which the operator may step on to actuate thepiston and cause the head to strike the lap rod at the same time heVpulls on the handle of the lap pin. In this type of machine there areloggerheads mounted at the ends of the lap pin which'risev with it tocontrol the density of the lap., To retain the lap rod within the lappin during rotation of the pin, while the lap is building up, a latch ismounted on the loggerhead at the open end of the lap pim which isVspaced from the endof the pin by at least the thickness of the head, andwhich may be lifted to permit thrusting the rod intoA the pin but whenreleased A2,968,447 Fenfedfe 177-1961 ICCv 2 willgravitatel downwardlyand stay in a lowered position across the head of the rod. i

The invention will now be described in greater' detail with reference tothe accompanying drawings wherein:

Fig. 1 is a front view of the machine with the loggerheads raised andshowing the lap and lap pin' partly in section;

Fig. 2 is an end elevation as seen from the left end of Fig. l with theejector omitted; a

Fig. 3 is an end elevation as seen from the left end of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a side view of the machine as seen from the right side of Fig.l; and

Fig. 5 is a plan view of the lap rod.

Referring to the drawings, particularly Figs. 1 and 4, the machine has aframe 10 vand a drive shaft 12 journaled in a lever 14 which is pivotedat 16 to the frame 10 or a bracket bolted thereto. The drive shaft 12carries a belt pulley 18 and a gear 20 meshing with a gear 22 from whichthe various moving parts of the machine are driven in the usual manner.e

A pair of support rollers 24 arranged transversely of the machinesupport the lap' 26 as it is wound on the lap pin 28 in conventionalfashion. Loggerheads 30 at the upper ends of rack bars 32 yieldablyresist upward movement of the lap pin as the lap is wound thereon tomaintain a predetermined density; Restraint on upward movement of theVrack bars may be of any suitable form Vand as herein illustratedcomprises a gear 34 on a shaft 36 meshing with a gear 38 on a shaft 40provided with a brake wheel 42 which cooperates with a brake shoe 44.

The machine is provided with a conventional stop motion, such as' shownin' the Rogers Patent No. 1,037,327, so that when the lap roll reaches apredetermined diameter the` machine will automatically stop. As thereshown the lever 14 is supported in a position to maintain engagement ofthe gears 20 and 22 by means of a spring pressed bolt 46 the left end ofwhich rests on a bracket 47 on the machine frame. ,Y The bolt 46 is provided witha projecting lug 4S' which is engaged by a knock oi lever S0pivoted at 52 to the frame 10. Movement of the knock off lever 50 to theright in engagement with the lug 48 moves the bolt 46 to the right so asto disengage its left end from the bracket 47 and hence to, permit thelever 14 to drop and disengage the gears 20 and 22. Movement of theknock olf lever 50 may be eifected in any suitable manner as theloggerheads rise with the increase in diameter of the roll to stop themachine when a predetermined diameter is reached; In the Rogers Patent1,037,327, which illustrates the mechanism and from which a moredetailed account of the operation may be had, the movement of the knockoli lever 50 is effected electrically, however, mechanical means may beemployed as is old in the art.

When the machine stops, as related above, the loggerheads are elevatedto releasethe ends of the lap pin by first releasing the brake band 44and then turning the brake wheel 42, which through the gears 38, 34 andgears on the shaft 36, meshing with the rack bars 32, raises the racks.The lap pin has a handle 56 at its right-hand f end and an axial' bore58 extending from its left end nearly through it. According to usualpractice a lap rod 62 (Fig. 5), having a head V64 is inserted in theopen end of the lap pin into the bore 58 until its head 64 engages theend of the pin; whereupon the operator` grasps the handle 56 of the pinand by giving a strong pull withdraws the pin from the core of the lap;As the pin is withdrawn the head 64 of the rod engages the left-hand endofthe lap roll so that it is left in the core of the roll in place ofthe pin as the latter is removed. The lap rod is long enough so that itsends project from opposite ends of the lap roll and provides means forsupporting the roll Y 3 on a rack prior to the carding operation. Thelap pin is immediately replaced on the machine and a new lap started.

The lap is wound'on the lap pin, as previously pointed out, underpressure so that it requires a very strong pull on the pin to remove itfrom the lap roll. When an operator is taking care of a number of thesemachines the task of withdrawing the lap pin makes the job diicultexcept for a strong man.

In accordance with the invention starting and/or ejecting mechanism 54is provided for use with this machine for the purpose of initiallystarting theV pin from the roll, that is overcoming the initial frictionto Ywithdrawing the pin so that the operator has only to continue thewithdrawal ofthe pin, which can be done very easily, leaving the rod inthe lap. The ejector comprises a power operated cylinder 66 (Figs. 1 and3) containing a piston (not shown) and a r'od 68 extending therefromhaving on its outer extremity a head 70. The cylinder is mounted' on abracket-plate 72 fastened to the frame of the machine in a horizontalposition with the axis of its piston rod horizontal, at an elevationwhich coincides substantially with the axis of the lap pin when thelatter is in its elevated position with a fully wound lap on it. Sincethe lap roll may be varied somewhat in diameter depending upon thematerial being wound on the pin the bracket-plate 72 is mounted forvertical adjustment on a bracket 7,3 and to this end is fastened theretoby bolts 74 passing through spaced parallel, vertical slots 76 in thebracket. The vertical adjustment aiorded by the slots is suiiicient tocompensate for differences in roll diameter. The cylinder isdouble-acting, being supplied with oil or air pressure, as desired, atits opposite ends through conductors 78 and 80 which lead to a commonvalve 82 controlled by a treadle 84. Since air pressure is commonlyavailable in mills an air cylinder is preferred and as shown herein thevalve 82 is provided with an air supply inlet 86. The treadle foroperating the valve is located on the oor directly below the handle 56of the lap pin so that as the operator steps on the treadle he is in aposition to grasp the handle 56 and to take advantage of the initialimpact on the opposite end of the rod as the cylinder is actuated tocause the head 70 at fthe end of the rod 68 to strike the left end ofthe lap rod. Actually the head 70 strikes the head 64 of the lap rodlocated within the lap pin and through it the end of the lap pin.

In practice the lap rod 62 is placed in the lap pin during the initialstages of winding the lap thereon since I it would be impossible toinsert the rod after the roll reaches its final diameter because thecylinder 66 is located so close to the end of the lap pin that it wouldbe in the way. During the build up of the lap, however, the lap pin isrotating and there is a tendency for the lap rod to work its way out ofthe pin so that if someone is not constantly watching the machine thelap rod may move part way out of the pin and when it reaches the levelof the ejector bind against the ejector or some part thereof and bend orbreak the parts. Accordingly, l

there is mounted on the left-hand loggerhead 30 (Fig. 1) a right anglebracket 88, one flange of which projects outwardly at right angles tothe loggerhead in a vertical plane paralleling the axis of the lap pinand has mounted on it a latch 90. The latch has slots 92 in it which areengaged over pins 94 upon whichY it is suspended and normally hangs inits lowermost position, that is with the upper ends of the slots engagedwith the pins 94. When in this position and with the loggerheads engagedwith the lap pin the lower end 96 of the latch occupies a positionsubstantially opposite the head 64 of the lap rod and thus prevents thelap rod from working out of the lap pin. When it is necessary to inertthe lap rod the latch is lifted suiciently to uncover the open end ofthe lap pin, whereupon the rod may be inserted therein, this being doneearly in the building of the lap on the pin. When the latch is releasedit automatically falls over'` theend of the rod and remains in thisposition as the lap is building up to its iinal diameter thus retainingthe rod in place. When the lap reaches its final diameter, as previouslypointed out, the machine is automatically brought to aY stop; Theoperator then raises the loggerheads so as to release theY lap pin andvsince the latch is carried by the left-hand loggerhead it is elevatedaway from the lap rod. The operator then grasps the handle 56,'steps onthe treadle- 84 and tugs' the lap pin which, because it has been startedfrom the lap by the impact of the head 70 on the head 64, can be easilywithdrawn from the lap, leaving the rod in its place.

It should be understood that the present disclosure is for the purposeof illustration only and that this invention includes .all modificationsand equivalents which fall Within the scope of the appended claims,

I claim:

1. The combination with a picker lap machine having winding rolls, a lappin, and loggerheads arranged yieldingly to resist vertical movement ofthe lap pin as the lap is wound thereon, said lap pin having an axialbore extending part way through it from one end and a handle at itsopposite end, and a lap rod mounted within the bore with its inner endadjacent the inner end of the bore, and its outer end projecting fromthe one end of the lap pin, of a gravity actuated latch carried by oneof the loggerheads and spaced axially from the projecting end of the lappin by at least the length of the projecting end of the lap rod andnormally hanging downwardly opposite the end of the lap rod for holdingthe lap rod within the lap pin throughout vertical movement of the lappin as the lap is wound thereon, said latch being vertically movable topermit placing the lap rod within the lap pin, a device mounted at alevel corresponding to the level that the lap pin will have when the lapis fully wound, and means for effecting operation of the device to applya jarring force to the lap pin to dislodge it to facilitate withdrawingthe lap pin from the lap leaving the lap rod therein.

2. The combination with a picker lap machine having winding rolls, a lappin, and loggerheads arranged yieldingly toV resist vertical movement ofthe lap pin as the lap is wound thereon, said lap pin having an axialbore extending part way through it from one end and a handle at i-tsopposite end, and a lap rod mounted within the bore with its inner endabutting the inner end of 'the bore, and its outer end projecting fromthe one end of the lap pin, of a gravity actuated latch carried by oneof the loggerheads and spaced axially from the projecting end of the lappin by at least the length of the projecting end of the lap rod andnormally hanging downwardly opposite the end of the rod for holding thelap rod Within the lap pin throughout vertical movement of the lap pinas the lap is wound thereon, said latch being vertically movable topermit placing the rod within the pin, an ejector mounted opposite theprojecting end of the lap rod at a level corresponding to the level thatthe lap rod will have when the lap is fully wound, and means foreffecting operation ofthe ejector to impart a sharp blow to the lap rodand Vthrough it to impart a sharp blow to the lap pin to drive itaxially from the lap.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 355508Clayton Ian. 4, 1887 699,723 Swenson May 13, 1902 778,881 Mouton Jan. 3,1905 1,037,327 Rogers Sept. 3, 1912 1,581,483 Dahlquist Apr. 20, 19261,588,687 Richter June 15, 1926 2,369,606 Reiners et al. Feb. 13, 19452,388,774 Tice Nov. 13, 1945 2,537,263 VFogleY Ian. 9, 1951

